Retail theft crackdown keeps delivering results: 25,675 arrests and $190 million in recovered stolen goods

What you need to know: Delivering on public safety promises, Governor Gavin Newsom announced continued progress to prevent and prosecute organized retail theft, including over 25,675 arrests, leading to nearly 20,049 cases referred for prosecution. Local law enforcement agencies have already recovered over $190 million in stolen property.

SACRAMENTO - Continuing to thwart bad actors and strengthen local communities, Governor Gavin Newsom today announced sustained success in battling organized retail theft and prosecuting criminals for their actions through local and state partnerships. Between October 2023 and June 2025, state-funded local law enforcement operations resulted in the arrest of more than 25,675 suspects and the referral of nearly 20,049 cases for prosecution. In the last quarter alone, law enforcement agencies able to do this essential work as a result of state funding recovered a staggering $40 million in stolen goods. These results drove the total amount of recovered stolen property agencies have been able to recover more than $190 million,a total increase of nearly 28%.

Our focus is simple: keeping Californians safe. We're cracking down on organized retail crime, partnering with local law enforcement, protecting small businesses, and making sure the people responsible are held to account.

Governor Gavin Newsom

Proposed by Governor Newsom and distributed by the Board of State and Community Corrections (BSCC), the organized retail theft (ORT) grants have provided 38 law enforcement agencies with over $242 million in funding for purchasing new equipment, launching enhanced enforcement operations, hiring new staff, and establishing partnerships with the retail community.

"The ORT grants are empowering local law enforcement to take bold, coordinated action against organized retail crime," said BSCC Board Chair Linda Penner. "The results speak for themselves - safer communities, stronger partnerships, and a more resilient retail economy statewide."

Arresting and deterring organized retail theft rings

As reported by grantees, law enforcement was able to recover over $190 million in stolen goods from October 2023 to June 2025. The grants have proved to be critical in supporting law enforcement and the retail community. Notable highlights include:

The Sacramento Sheriff's Officearrested four suspects, all Colombian nationals, involved in multiple jewelry store thefts. The crew is suspected to be part of a highly sophisticated, international theft ring, with ties to cartels. Through extensive surveillance funded by the ORT grant, the crew was observed casing jewelry stores across the region. The Sacramento jewelry theft alone resulted in a loss of more than a million dollars.

Detectives from the Santa Clara County Sheriff'sand District Attorney's Officesarrested multiple members of a large, organized retail theft ring responsible for at least 80 thefts and recovered more than $380,000 in stolen propertyfrom Bay Area T.J. Maxx stores, and seized illicit narcotics.

The Ventura County District Attorney'sand Sheriff's Officesrecently brought down a nine-member organized retail theft ring responsible for the nation's largest series of theftsacross Home Depot stores. The sophisticated network was responsible for at least $10 million in stolen goods and more than 600 thefts across Southern California, with the ringleader facing 45 felony counts.

The Bakersfield Police DepartmentOrganized Retail Theft unit has made 183 arrests. Recently, arrests were made for those responsible for over $15,000 in loss of merchandiseacross stores including Ulta, Nordstrom Rack, Target, Petsmart, Lowe's, and Target.

The Costa Mesa Police Departmentarrested suspects with multiple garbage bagsfull of stolen clothing, including Lululemon, valued at more than $20,000. Costa Mesa also started bicycle patrol operations that allowed closer monitoring of shopping centers and direct contact with business owners, resulting in multiple arrests and citations.

The Modesto Police Departmentreports a 41% decreasein stolen vehicles, as well as decreases in other property crimes. The Department credits ORT grant-funded license plate reader systems, as well as focused enforcement, proactive detection, and offender apprehension for leading to their measurable success.

Prosecuting organized retail theft rings

In addition, the BSCC has also provided over $24 million to 13 district attorneys' offices through a vertical prosecution grant program that allows the same prosecutors to focus on a case from beginning to end, providing victims and law enforcement a single point of contact. Although independent of the prevention grant outcomes,1,894 people were convicted of theft-related property crimes, an increase of over 24% from the last quarter of data. Of those, 647 convictions were related to organized retail theft. Grantees expect the number of convictions achieved through the grant program to continue to rise in the next few quarters.

Two recent cases out of Santa Clara County District Attorney's Officedemonstrate the value of these grants:

• People v. Silas Jones(C2510745): From January to May 2025, Silas Jones was involved in a series of organized retail thefts and robberies primarily targeting liquor and household goods across multiple retail locations. Jones faces 16 charges in Santa Clara County, including multiple counts of grand theft and second-degree robbery, as well as charges for reckless driving while evading police, receiving stolen property, resisting a peace officer, driving with a suspended license, and an out-on-bail enhancement.
• People v. Salina Cocrum and Michael Lozano(C2507048): Cocrum and Lozano, acting in concert with numerous accomplices, carried out a coordinated series of 28 thefts across Santa Clara County. The targeted retailers included Ulta, Victoria's Secret, Sally Beauty, CVS, and Costco. The defendants systematically stole large volumes of merchandise with high resale value, consistent with a deliberate plan to fence the stolen goods for financial gain rather than for personal use. They have been charged with ten felony counts of Organized Retail Theft, 15 felony counts of Grand Theft, and ten felony counts of Petty Theft with Prior Convictions.

The Sonoma County District Attorney'sORT unit was approached by several major retailers to accept jurisdiction for ORT crimes that have also occurred outside of Sonoma County, citing the "aggressive" nature of ORT prosecutions in Sonoma County made possible by grant funding.

The Yolo County District Attorney's Officecredits their grant funded retail theft prosecution FastPass program for their recent successful efforts, reflected in the number of cases filed and convictions, which has resulted in a total of56 convictions. Yolo County indicates that strong relationships have been established with both retailers and law enforcement, enhancing their collective ability to address the retail theft crisis.

In total, $267 million in grant funding to 55 communities have enabled cities and counties to hire more police and secure more felony charges against suspects.

California's Organized Retail Crime Task Force

Earlier this week, Governor Newsom today announced that this year, the state's Organized Retail Crime Task Force has made nearly 800 arrests, conducted over 500 investigations, and recovered over 150,000 stolen goods with an estimated retail value of $8.6 million.

Led by the California Highway Patrol, the Organized Retail Crime Task Force works with state, local, and federal partners to tackle retail crime statewide. Between the inception of this task force in 2019 and September 30, 2025, the CHP has been involved in over 4,050 investigations, leading to the arrest of nearly 4,600 suspects and the recovery of over 1.4 million stolen goods valued at approximately $60 million.

Through various partnerships and investments, the state is seeing real progress at increasing public safety and stopping bad actors once and for all.

Crime is down in California

California is delivering on its promises - significant investments in public safety help ensure safety in communities statewide, with lower crime rates in 2024.

According to the Major Cities Chiefs Association, overall violent crime in major California cities is down 12.5% in 2025 compared to 2024. As evidenced by another data setreleased by the California Department of Justice, nearly every major crime category, including violent crime and homicides, dropped in 2024. Plus, California's 2024 homicide rate is now the second lowest it has been since at least 1966. The overall number of homicides decreased by nearly 12% since 2023. In addition, total full-time criminal justice personnel increased 1.9% from 2023 to 2024.

Investing in California's public safety

While Republicans in Congress pushed their "big beautiful betrayal" bill, cutting funding to vital public safety programs, California demonstrated what real public safety looks like: serious investments, strong enforcement, and real results.

California has invested $1.7 billionsince 2019 to fight crime, help local governments hire more police, and improve public safety. In 2023, as part of California's Public Safety Plan, the Governor announced the largest-everinvestment to combat organized retail crime in state history, an annual 310%increase in proactive operations targeting organized retail crime, and special operations acrossthe state to fight crime and improve public safety.

In August 2024, Governor Newsom signed into law the most significant bipartisan legislation to crack down on property crime in modern California history.Building on the state's robust laws and record public safety funding, these bipartisan bills offer new tools to bolster ongoing efforts to hold criminals accountable for smash-and-grab robberies, property crime, retail theft, and auto burglaries. While California's crime rate remains at near-historic lows, these laws help the state adapt to evolving criminal tactics, ensuring perpetrators are effectively held accountable.